Dinner lady earns lunch with Charles and Jamie

Last updated at 10:46 14 February 2007

This is a dinner lady for whom Turkey Twizzlers are very firmly off the menu. She is a school cook leading the fight against childhood obesity by serving up healthy, organic food, some of it grown on school grounds.

Tomorrow she will sit down to a meal cooked by Jamie Oliver and hosted by Prince Charles at Clarence House.

Rose Harper, of Millfields Community School in Hackney, has been recognised as among the best cooks in the country.

Mrs Harper and her headteacher will be among 120 guests invited to the royal residence for a celebration of her efforts.

Meals at Millfields are particularly healthy as nearly all the food is organic. The children also grow their own vegetables.

Catering manager Mrs Harper has been at the school for 40 years and has seen a massive transformation in the food served.

She said: "When I started here, we were serving up soggy cabbage and soggy potatoes. Then it was junk food and burgers like cardboard.

"Now, we still have burgers but we make everything from scratch. We serve 500 children every day, we're very organised."

Headteacher of the school, Dame Anna Hussan, said the food was not only beneficial to pupils' health but also helped them concentrate.

Their small vegetable patch has become such a success the school is in the process of building a roof garden. She said: "Growing plants has been fantastic for pupils. We grew tomatoes out of a chimney pot and they got very excited when they saw the flowers. Then they saw the tomatoes and when they turned red ... oh my!

"It helps the children understand how things grow, then they can boil their own potatoes and add some herbs they have seen growing."

Also invited tomorrow is Judy Stock of Lilian Bayliss School, Kennington. Her dining room has had themed menus, such as Africa Day as part of black history week.

Catering manager Ms Stock said: "It's about educating children and encouraging them to try a small amount of new, healthier foods they might not be used to. To keep the children interested, it is good to vary the menus and introduce theme days. I get ideas from recipe books and from my manager who sends me recipes."

Jamie Oliver, who will be cooking organic lamb hotpot for the Prince's guests, has been at the forefront of campaigning for healthier school meals.

Prince Charles is also keen to promote healthy meals for children. His spokesman said: "It is something the Prince has felt passionately about for many years."

In 1986, he decided to convert his farm at Highgrove to a completely organic system to demonstrate the environmental and commercial benefits.

More than 20 years later it is a f lagship for the benefits of an organic, sustainable form of agriculture, and profits - about £1 million a year - go to charity.

Prue Leith, chairwoman of the School Food Trust, which is helping to organise the event, said: "It is absolutely fantastic that the Prince of Wales has decided to personally host such a prestigious event for Britain's school cooks.

"For so long, much of the hard work and dedication that exists in school kitchens has gone unnoticed.

"This event shouts from the rooftops that school food is changing and that this is hugely important for the children of this country.

"The food in our schools will be transformed within the next few years. It is vital we have a wellqualified, motivated and respected workforce to ensure that it happens.

"We know there is much to do but the Trust is supporting school cooks, head teachers, local authorities and parents."